Meeting At The Crossroads
by natsu-no-sora
Summary: The arrangement has been set. In this modern era, no one in their right mind would want to comply with it. But Usui was bored and Misaki was... well, she didn't have any choice, did she? Especially when the whole world's trying to shove it down her throat.
1. Prologue

**Kaichō wa Maid-sama! 2005 © Fujiwara Hiro**

**Lala Magazine under Hakusensha Publishing**

* * *

**•=•=•=•=•=•**

**Prologue: Sorry, Not Happening**

**•=•=•=•=•=•**

There was loud, echoing "NO!" rang throughout the usually-quiet Ayuzawa residence.

"Absolutely no!" The eldest daughter of the household firmly said.

Her father –the famous chef Ayuzawa Sakuya– frantically tried to calm her down. "But Misaki, this agreement has been set even before you were born. Both our fathers wanted our families to unite as one–"

"And you deemed _us_ to be the perfect little piece of rope that will tie your absurd deal," she finished coldly, crossing her arms over her heaving chest.

"Yes– I mean, no! It's not like that–"

"Then what is it?!" she yelled yet again.

It was Usui Hirose –her father's best friend– who answered her softly and patiently, "We are honoring a request from our late fathers, my dear."

Misaki gritted her teeth. She didn't mean to be so rude in front of the elderlies, but it was just so utterly insane. Who in their right minds would want to arrange a marriage between their teenage children? As far as she knew, it only exists in her history books. She took a deep breath and tried to reason with them.

"But what about _me_? I'm too young, Dad. Please, I'm just sixteen. I'm practically a kid! Marrying is definitely not on top of my priority list. Seriously, we're already in the twenty-first century. Arranged marriage is not trending anymore," she almost whined. She continued to rant on as she averted her attention towards the quiet blonde guy beside her. "Hey you, don't you have anything to say?"

Usui Takumi, the only child of Hirose and her supposedly pending husband, yawned as if the on-going conversation didn't interest him at all. He shrugged and smiled lazily.

"Takumi has already agreed to this arrangement," Hirose informed quite proudly.

Misaki's amber eyes turned as wide as the tea saucers. "You _what?!_"

The young man nonchalantly sipped his cup of tea. "I'm bored," he said as if that explained it all.

Misaki's left eye twitched; a vein popped on her forehead as her anger escalated at an alarming rate. "You're bored," she repeated; voice dripping with deadly venom.

He nodded, either oblivious to the fact that the raven-haired girl was ready to rip his head off or he simply didn't care.

Misaki was about to breath fire; wow, nice to know that her future husband sees her as a potential past time to satiate his boredom. That was kind of a brutal jab to her dignity as a woman. Was that all she was worth? A past time? Unconsciously, she gripped her teacup tightly. She was _not_ a goddamn play toy.

After a beat of intense moment, Misaki breathed slowly. She had enough. She was so angry she couldn't pick out the dirtiest word in her vocabulary to insult this... this... this _fucking asshole_. There's no way she's going to marry him. No fucking way in hell.

She stood up, a static air of confidence bristled around her. The other occupants of the table looked at her, expecting and anticipating. She gave them a glare straight from the underworld.

"Sorry to burst your delusional bubble, but no marriage will take place any time soon," she said aristocratically menacing. "Good day to you, gentlemen."

Misaki didn't bother to savor the flabbergasted faces of her audiences as she turned around and left the living room.

**•=•=•=•=•=•**

**15 September 2013**

**OWARI**

**•=•=•=•=•=•**

SORA'S RAMBLING CORNER:

Nyaho! Sora desu, yoroshiku onegaishimasu m(_ _)m

One night, while I was battling the major head block for "Back to Me", another idea came streaming like sparkly river in my mind and I know I just have to write it down before it drives me crazy.

So, there you have the prologue. I don't know when the first chapter will materialize, but that won't be soon as I am busy with my real life obligations (it sucks, I know).

Thank you for giving my new series a try. I hope you like it.

Itte kuru ne~

**PS:** As I have said, I am battling a ferocious war against the bloody blockage in my head, so "Back To Me" will be on hiatus for a few weeks or even months. But just remember: I. Will. Finish. It.


	2. Honeymoon Cruise

**Kaichō wa Maid-sama! 2005 © Fujiwara Hiro**

**Lala Magazine under Hakusensha Publishing**

* * *

**•=•=•=•=•**

**Chapter 01: Honeymoon Cruise**

**•=•=•=•=•**

Misaki roamed her blazing eyes around the fancy cabin suite of the Royal Caribbean's Splendour Of The Seas. She was _so_ mad she could practically light up the whole ship on fire with her leaking anger.

Chucking her bag somewhere in the room, she flopped down on the queen size bed, face first and legs dangling on the edge carelessly.

"I can't believe this. I really can't believe this," she muttered.

"That's got to be the hundred and twelfth time you said that today," a velvety voice came from the door.

Despite the beautiful, white dress she was donned in, she sat on the bed like an Indian and glared at blonde man in suit and necktie. "Because it's so damn unbelievable!" she said incredulously. "Just about twenty four hours ago, I was having a perfectly normal teenage life, single and all. But now, with a blink of an eye, I'm married to someone I barely knew."

Her newly-acquired husband, Usui Takumi, sat beside her on the bed, dutifully ignoring the icy cold glares she aimed at him. "You're making it sound so bad–"

"It _is_ bad," she interjected stubbornly.

"–and we don't _barely knew_ each other. We've been together since we were children," he pointed out.

Misaki scoffed. "Hardly."

He sighed, loosening the choking tie around his neck. He pulled his legs up and they sat facing each other. "It's going to be fine, Misaki. Don't think too badly about this."

"Don't think too badly? Hell, I'm only sixteen and I'm already married! How am I supposed to think about this? Throw a party and celebrate this stupid marriage?" she bit out. "I still have so many things I wanted to with my life and I don't want to be with someone who doesn't care about the world. _I don't want to be stuck with you!_"

"Ouch. That kinda hurt, Misa-chan," Takumi pouted, dramatically putting a hand over his chest.

"It's all your fault," she added coldly.

"My fault?" he couldn't hide his surprise. All the humor on his annoyingly handsome face vanished.

"If you hadn't agreed to this shit, then maybe we're not in this situation!" That and the raven-haired girl stormed out of the cabin, her dress bellowing angrily behind her.

"Hey–" his attempt to stop her was cut off by the slamming door.

**•=•=•=•=•=•=•=•=•=•**

Misaki trudged the cruise deck like she just attended a funeral, rather than the honeymoon she was supposed to enjoy. She reached the open area and quietly leaned on the metal railing, chin resting on her palm.

The night was clear; stars dotted the cloudless sky and the wind was cold and salty. She could hear the water sloshing against the ship as it cruised through god-knows-which sea.

Where, exactly, were they, anyway? It seemed like forever since they left the port of Venice. All she knew from the itinerary was that they were on their way to Kotor, Montenegro; the first destination in their impromptu seven-night Mediterranean cruise.

Speaking of which, the very reason why they were on-board a huge ship was their parents.

Misaki recalled the recent events of her life. She remembered the day (it was the day before yesterday) she came home from a very exhausting day at school. Her father, mother and younger sister were waiting for her in the living room along with Usui Hirose and his son, Takumi.

Seeing them all gathered together, her heart sank to the pits of her stomach. Something was not right. Something was _terribly wrong_.

And she was right.

To cut the story short, the adults presented her the family registration papers, saying that she was no longer a member of the Ayuzawa household and that she was legally transferred under Usui family as the wife of Takumi.

No one will ever forget what happened after that big revelation. Misaki surely gave them a nice ass-whipping straight from hell. But it didn't matter to their parents; at least, they got to do what they wanted. And despite the biggest tantrum she threw, they still managed to ship them off to a honeymoon cruise which explained her current position.

Thinking about it, Misaki wanted to murder someone just to let out her maddening anger.

"Hello there, little Miss," a slightly accented voice pulled her out of her thoughts. She looked to her left and saw a man in business suit walking -or more like staggering- towards her. He looked foreign, but not a Caucasian. He was olive-skinned and had a pair of deep, dark eyes. Italian? Spanish, maybe?

"Another human to deal with. Great," she muttered irritably.

"Why are you out here all alone? Aren't you lonely?" he asked in an icky sweet tone. Misaki mentally grimaced.

"No, I'm fine," she replied shortly with a bit of edge in her voice. She ignored him and averted her attention back to the waters.

"Want to come with me? We'll do fun things..." his words were slightly garbled and the way his eyes were almost closing told Misaki that this guy was drunk. He slowly advanced towards her until she was within his arm's reach and it seemed like he was struggling to keep upright.

She eyed him suspiciously and took a few steps further from him. But the cold, metal railing hit her back. "No, thank you. Now if you'll excuse me, mister, I'd like to be alone," she said as politely as a drunken guy deserved and sidestepped to leave.

"Not so fast, Missy," he caught her wrist with one hand and restrained her shoulder with the other. Adrenaline pulsed through her with the sudden physical contact. She held her defense reflexes to flip this guy over the railing and watch him fall to his death. No, she must not commit homicide no matter how much the situation insisted her to.

"Let me go," she said; calm and quiet like the sea before a raging storm.

"Let's have some fun, shall we?" He leaned in closer; his breath smelled like rotten grapes. She didn't hide her disgust as she nearly gagged on his face.

"Let me go," she repeated, seething through gritted teeth and tugging her wrist from his grasp.

"Oh, come on! Join me tonight, let's have some drink!" he said cheerfully.

_Insistent bastard!_ "I said... Let. Me. Go. Now."

"Aw, don't be like that. I'm not a bad guy," he said. "In fact, I am a very nice guy..." he whispered as his rough hand slid down her bare forearm in a not-so-decent way.

And that was it. Homicide or not, Misaki was ready to throw the guy overboard.

"Get your hands off my _wife_, good sir," a dangerously calm voice came from behind, rendering them both to pause. Takumi was there, standing in the shadows. He had his eyes intently on the guy currently violating her like he wanted to burn a hole on his body.

But Misaki was half-aware of it as her heart did a little tap dance at his emphasized remark.

_Wife..._ she blinked. Oh, that's right; they just got married more than a day ago. She mentally groaned. Apparently, the word hadn't sunk in her thick skull yet.

The man dropped his hands faster than a magician could and took a step back. Takumi stood between them as if shielding her. He held her hand tightly.

"You're married?" the man asked, shock etched on his face. His half-lidded eyes traveled down to their intertwined hands and saw the gleam of light coming from a matching pair of silver bands wrapped around their fingers. Their parents insisted them on wearing it and for the first time, Misaki was glad she hadn't taken it off yet.

The man chuckled and shook his head; it looked like he had forgotten that he was supposed to be drunk. "But you're too young to be married," he mused.

Misaki hissed. "Well, you're too old to be hitting on girls–"

"Sshhh," Takumi cut her off, narrowing his emerald eyes on her and warning her to shut up. He turned to the man, his voice calm but sharp. "Yes, we're married and yes, we're quite aware that we're still young. But that doesn't give you any right to touch her. Can you please leave us alone?"

"Yeah, sure," the man said, holding his hands defensively while backing away. "We're cool. I just thought she's... you know. Well, whatever. I was wrong, I'm sorry. I'll leave you two, okay? Good luck in your marriage. Don't cheat on each other!" And with that, he quickly vanished around the corner.

The newlyweds both sighed exasperatedly. Takumi looked back at Misaki. "Are you okay?" he asked concernedly, cocking his head to catch her face.

"I'm fine," she muttered, glaring at the dark waters instead of meeting his eyes. "I could have thrown that stupid guy overboard if you didn't come."

Takumi smiled; you do not want to mess with this girl, he thought.

The silence was awkward. They were still holding each other's hands and no one knew how to let go inconspicuously. Misaki could feel Takumi's intent gaze on her and she fought the urge to squirm. When she couldn't stand it anymore, she blew out all the air in her lungs sharply but remained her eyes on the water.

"I'm sorry," she mumbled. "I didn't mean to lash out on you. I wasn't thinking, I'm sorry."

"It's nothing to worry about it, I understand," he said softly.

"It's just that... everything's slipping out of my control. Everything's so messed up. I can't keep up. I can't –I can't grasp it anymore. It's too much," she whimpered silently as she rubbed her face with her free hand.

"Hey, we're going to be fine. Trust me," Takumi put his hand on her shoulder reassuringly and drew her closer to him. He met her anxious eyes and said, "I know it's going to be difficult, but let's work this thing out, okay?"

She nodded slowly, captivated by those beautiful green orbs. "Okay," she whispered.

He smiled. "We'll talk later. For the meantime, let's go back. It's getting cold out here."

She nodded again and let him usher her back to their stateroom.

**•=•=•=•=•=•=•=•=•=•**

Because they spent their first night of marriage on a plane, it was technically their first time as husband and wife to sleep on the same bed.

After changing into her pajamas, Misaki realized it and her nerves ignited like fireworks. She lay on her side, hiding beneath the blanket and berating herself for feeling that way.

_It's not like something's going to happen, right? We're not a real husband and wife, for heaven's sake!_

But her heart ignored her brain as it continued to pound like helicopter blades against her ribcage. It didn't help that the bathroom door opened and she heard Takumi stepped towards the bed. She could smell the rosy fragrance of the bath powder he used coming off him. She felt him sat down on the bed. Unconsciously, her eyes tightened shut.

"Misaki..." his breathy voice sent shivers down her spine.

"W-w-what?" she stuttered wonderfully. She flinched as if she was electrified when a hand blindly touched her shoulder through the blanket.

Takumi chuckled at her rigid muscle. "Relax," he said sweetly. "Why are you so tense?"

"I am not," she said. But she remained frozen still.

"I'm not going to bite you," he leaned closer and whispered in her ear. "Unless you want me to...?" he added; his words slurring seductively as he traced a finger on her forearm. Even through the blanket, she could feel his warmth...

Misaki jolted up on the bed; hair standing on its end all over her skin. "What the hell are you-" she accidentally bit her tongue as she gasped at how close their faces were.

"This is supposed to be our honeymoon, right?" he murmured.

"Y-your point is?"

"Do you know... what people do in their honeymoon?" his breath wafted on her face like freshly minced mint. His eyes gleamed like diamond. He inched closer, his gaze slowly sweeping down to her lips as if he wanted to devour it.

_No!_ Her heart went wild. She suddenly felt like she was having a fever. She swallowed nervously, feeling her limbs turn into jellies. Her instinct was telling her to push him away and scream bloody pervert, but she couldn't move. She was under his spell.

Takumi had his arms on her sides, effectively trapping her. He was still leaning towards her until she could no longer back away. All she could do was to shut her eyes and ball her fists as she waited for her first kiss to be stolen.

Then, a soft, warm sensation tingled on her nose. Takumi had kissed her _on the nose._

Misaki snapped her eyes open, still holding her breath. She stared at him for what seemed like forever before blinking. Once. Twice. Thrice.

Until Takumi burst out laughing. He fell on the bed, hugging his stomach as he killed himself from his own laughter. He was clearly satisfied with whatever he was expecting.

Misaki was not amused. After processing what just happened and after realizing how utterly embarrassing it was, she growled angrily. She gave him a good beating; punching and kicking him senseless.

"You little perverted alien... I hate you! I hate you! Go burn in hell, Usui Takumi!"

"Ow! Ow! I'm sor– ouch! S-stop, Misa-chan! I'm sorry, I'm sorry!" He caught her fists before he could fall from the bed.

She shot flaming daggers at him while catching her breath.

He sat up and wiped the tears in the corner of his eyes. "Sorry, you're just too cute when you're flustered. Your face is all red," he chuckled.

If it was possible, she turned even redder. She aimed another punch on his gut but he held her fist.

"I'm sorry, I can't help it," he still had the nerve to grin.

"I hate you," she mumbled childishly.

"Please don't hate your husband on the second day of marriage," he said.

"Ugh. Don't say those words, it's creepy," she groaned.

Takumi chuckled. "It's the truth, though."

"I know."

Silence passed. Her fists were still in his hands. He was absently drawing circles on her knuckles with his thumbs.

"Misaki..." he called out her attention, softly squeezing her hands.

"What?"

"Look at me."

Misaki heaved a sigh and looked at him hesitantly.

"Nothing's going to happen tonight, if that's what you're so worried about, so will you please tune down your heartbeat? I can feel it on your pulses," he said in a tone of amusement.

She blushed again and pulled her hands away. "Like I could control it," she scoffed. "Excuse me, but unlike you, this is my first time sleeping with someone from the opposite gender."

Takumi raised his eyebrow delicately. "Unlike me? For your information, _Usui_ Misaki–" he stressed the word like he was mocking her "–I do _not_ sleep with every girl that happens to be on my way. I am very much as clean as you."

"Really?" she cocked her head, genuinely curious. "Not even with your girlfriend?"

"I have a wife, not a girlfriend," he rolled his eyes.

"Oh."

"Yes, and just so you can relax, I am not _that_ kind of guy. Nothing is going to happen tonight," he repeated more seriously this time. He put his hand on her head and ruffled her hair affectionately. "It's going to be a very long road, but we'll take it one step at a time, okay? I don't want this relationship to fall apart before we even get to build it."

Misaki warmed at his words. She didn't know how he could see the brighter side of this arrangement. She admired him for that. And in all honesty, Takumi wasn't as bad as she thought he was. She was just so frustrated that things didn't go the way she wanted and she blamed it all on him, which was unfair. In the last two days that they were together, she'd already seen a lot of him. Both the bad side and the good side. It was safe to say that maybe, probably, they could work this marriage thing out together.

"Let's go to sleep?" he smiled warmly.

She smiled back albeit small and shy. "Okay," she said. "Goodnight, Takumi," she yawned as she slid under the blanket and rested her head on the soft pillow.

Takumi turned off the lights. The full moon illuminated their room through the open door of the balcony. Somehow, it made the atmosphere calm, serene and romantic. He lay down beside her and whispered, "Goodnight, my dear wife."

Misaki groaned and was about to protest but a kiss on her temple cut her off. Heat crept up on her cheeks again. She turned her head to look at Takumi. She wasn't angry; she was just surprised at how tender it felt.

"What, can't I kiss my wife goodnight?" he defended.

There's no harm in that, right? "W-well, yeah... I suppose so," she mumbled.

He grinned boyishly, allowing her to actually see how handsome he was. He put an arm around her waist and tugged her carefully, silently asking to face him.

Misaki complied without much pondering. Partly because she was tired to argue and partly because he smelled so intoxicatingly good. He pulled her closer until the only thing separating their skin was their clothes.

She was tucked under his chin, her lips brushing against his throat with every movement. His arms served as her second blanket, while she allowed her petite arm to rest around his waist. He kissed the top of her head, just like a loving husband would do.

They both sighed, whether in tiredness or contentment, they weren't sure yet. But one thing was certain: The fact that they were comfortable enough in each other's arms to sleep soundly that night, it was a start.

Maybe... just maybe, this marriage wasn't so bad after all.

**•=•=•=•=•=•**

**02 October 2013**

**OWARI**

**•=•=•=•=•=•**

SORA'S RAMBLING CORNER:

Oho! Welcome to my rambling corner.

You've just read the first chapter of this story, I hope you like it. It didn't turn out to be what you've expected, did it? Haha! The main idea centers at their arranged marriage. Persuading Misaki was never a part of my plot. It's just like, *BANG!* they're already married.

For those who are confused, Yuu Hirose is the real name of Usui Takumi's biological father (as mentioned in manga. He never appeared nor mentioned in the anime). But I changed his name to _Usui_ because it sounds weird to have different surnames between father and son. And it sounds weirder to change Usui Takumi's name, so I fixed it according to what's more appropriate to my story. Sorry for not explaining that in the prologue.

Despite the OOCness and grammatical errors, I hope you guys keep on supporting this new story until the last chapter. Thank you so very much!

**PS:** "Back To Me" is on its way to come back to you :)

**PPS:** Have you read the final chapter of Maid-sama? It was... _ugh!_ So perfect! A very, _very_ good conclusion. Ah, it's official, Maid-sama is done. Thank you for the hard work, Fujiwara-sensei! I'll look forward to your future works.

**[WARNING: SPOILERS AHEAD!]**

**.**

**.**

**.**

There is a ten-year time skip. Misaki cut her hair short. She became a lawyer. Usui is a doctor. They got married in England. Everyone is there, including the three idiots. Suzuna and Hinata are hinted to be married soon (or they're already married?). There is a Maid Latte branch in London owned by Honoka.


	3. Stuck Together Like Glue

**Kaichō wa Maid-sama! 2005 © Fujiwara Hiro**

**Lala Magazine under Hakusensha Publishing**

* * *

**•=•=•=•=•=•**

**Chapter 02: Stuck Together Like Glue**

**•=•=•=•=•=•**

A shotgun marriage and an impromptu honeymoon cruise with someone from your distant childhood memories shouldn't be _this_ fun. But for the last couple of days, Misaki was having the time of her life as she cruised around Europe with her husband.

At first, her mind was so busy being frustrated that she'd forgotten it was actually one of her dreams to go there someday. But once the ship docked at its first port of call, Misaki visibly lightened up.

The couple explored the European cities and towns together. Sometimes, Takumi would securely wrap his arm around Misaki's waist, or sometimes, she would link her arm with his, tugging at it and excitedly pointing at something that had caught her attention.

But more frequently, they would keep their fingers intertwined together. Little gestures like that made the distance between them decrease. It made them more of a couple rather than strangers they once were.

They had an archeological tour in Croatia, and of course, shopping was on the list of things to do there. They went boat sailing in Capri and tasted authentic pizzas in the place where it originated: Naples. Rome had a pretty big crowd when they got there, so Takumi had to keep a tight hold of his wife as she had the tendency to get excited at random things and ran off without him.

The Mediterranean sunshine in Florence was so beautiful it looked like it came straight from an ancient painting. They went on a quiet walk there and snapped a few pictures together.

Barcelona, Spain was the last destination of their ship. They already had a plan to visit churches and museums before their flight.

During the long cruising nights, the couple would sit in the open area of their deck. They would sit there and talked about all sorts of things there is in life.

One time, Takumi caught Misaki staring at their matching rings that was wrapped around her finger. He quietly approached her.

"What are you thinking?" he asked.

"Nothing," she answered immediately. "Just wondering how I end up like this." She held up her hand to show the glinting silver ring.

Takumi smiled. Yeah, sometimes he wondered about that, too.

"It's weird, you know. It never crossed my mind that someday, I would marry _you_," she added thoughtfully.

"It's weird," he agreed with a small nod.

"We've practically known each other since we were babies; tell me why did we never become friends? Maybe it would be a lot easier that way," she muttered.

That was true; they've known each other ever since they were kids. The Usui family frequented the Ayuzawa's home on weekends and during holidays; Ayuzawa family would come to Usui Estate in Hokkaido. Even though they spent a lot of their childhood together, they never really became friends. They weren't exactly enemies, but it was just that they had different interests as children; you know, being a girl and a boy and all.

The frequent visits vanished when Takumi's family moved away. The two families stayed connected but the two children drifted apart.

Well, that was it. Until a week ago, when they were suddenly bound together by two rings and a promise.

"You were really elusive back then. Always the mature one, always the obedient one. You preferred taking care of your little sister than running around the house with me. You wanted clean, while I liked making mess. You know… things like that," Takumi shrugged. "I think it's the best that way. Besides, it would be awkward to marry the _friend_ you've known your whole life, wouldn't it?"

"Yeah, maybe this is better. And I think we're working it out well," Misaki smiled at him.

"Yes," Takumi nodded, returning her smile with his crooked one. He took her hand and tugged at it, "Let's go get some food?"

"Sure." Her hand automatically tightened around his...

Sometimes, when procrastination didn't possess them, they would take long walks on the top deck where an improvised garden was made. They teased each other and laughed together as they went by, like some old best friends would.

There were also times where they would just sit on the couch in the balcony of their cabin and quietly read books.

It was the first time Misaki saw Takumi in eyeglasses. He had just entered the balcony while she was already sitting in one of the couches; a book resting on her hands.

"You wear glasses?" She looked up and tilted her head curiously. She scooted over to give him space to sit even though there were still two other couches available.

"Well... yeah," Takumi smirked at her as he sat down beside her. The black couch was big enough for two but that left no space between them. Either they didn't mind or they've gotten used to their constant physical contact. They slept on the same bed, after all.

"How bad?" She took the glasses off from him and tried it on.

"Not so bad," he answered, watching her as she roamed her new eyesight around.

"Everything's seems magnified," she commented.

"Looks good on you," he said, brushing away the stubborn bangs from her face.

"Thanks, but I don't need one." She gave it back to him and went back on reading her book.

"Good for you," he replied and the comforting silence settled down on them.

A moment later, Misaki would lightly rest her head on his shoulder, still engrossed with the book she was reading, while her husband would absently ran his fingers through her raven locks.

Life is so much easier like that.

**•=•=•=•=•=•=•=•=•=•=•=•**

It was an exhausting thirteen-hour flight from Barcelona back to Tokyo. Even in the first class cabin, Misaki could feel the heavy blows of travel on her body. She fell in and out of sleep all through the flight. Whenever the plane found turbulence, she would snap out of sleep like an electrocuted fish. Good thing, Takumi was there to calm her down. He had his arm around her shoulder while she slept on his chest, listening to his heartbeat and calm breathing.

When Takumi finally shook her awake, a voice in the intercom was already instructing the cabin to sit up properly and prepare for landing.

"Good morning," he greeted her with a blinding smile, softly brushing away the stray locks of raven hair from her face.

"Good morning," she croaked; her throat thick with sleep.

Takumi handed her a bottle of water which she gratefully chugged down.

"Better?" he asked.

"Yes, thank you," she smiled back. "How close are we?" She opened the window shades and streams of bright sunlight flooded in.

He reached over and adjusted her seatbelt for her. "Fifteen minutes to landing," he answered.

**•=•=•=•=•=•=•=•=•=•=•=•  
**

"What do you mean I do not belong here?"

Once they got out of the busy Narita Airport, they went straight to Misaki's house.

As the couple stood there, Misaki gritted her teeth in annoyance. She very nearly bit her sister's head off when her younger version blocked her way into the house, saying that she no longer had a space in there. She was tired and all she wanted to do was to drop dead on her bed. She got no time to play stupid games with her sister.

"Dad said this isn't your house anymore," Suzuna said rather bluntly. She looked past her sister's shoulder and acknowledged the presence of her brother-in-law with a small awkward smile, which Takumi returned warmly.

"What?! That's bullshit. Where is that old man?" She pushed her way through, stomping angrily on the wooden floor.

Takumi and Suzuna followed her, looking at each other like, _Exasperating, isn't she?  
_  
"Dad!" Misaki called out.

The wanted old man poked his head from the second floor. His eyes were strained as if he just woke up. Well, it was only fifteen minutes past seven in the morning, he ought to be sleeping. But Misaki couldn't care about that as she glared at his dear ol' dad.

"Oh, Misaki-chan. Welcome back! How's your honeymoon? Was it cool? Did you have fun? By the way, why are you here? You shouldn't be here. Good morning, Takumi-kun! Did you take good care of my daughter? Are we expecting a bunch of grandbabies soon?" Sakuya said in one breath, not bothering to pause and was oblivious to the enormous killing intent coming off his daughter.

Takumi didn't have the chance to open his mouth to greet the old man back as his wife breathed fire at her father.

"_That _is why I am here, what the hell are you talking about? Why shouldn't I be here? This is my house and I have every right to be here. And what are you saying about _grandbabies_? You must be delusional," Misaki said incredulously, ignoring her suddenly aflame cheeks.

Sakuya sighed dramatically. He stepped down the stairs and put an arm on her shoulder. "My daughter," he started, "you're married now, and you know married women do not live with her family anymore, right?"

A few heartbeats past in silence.

"So in a genius translation: you're kicking me out," Misaki concluded as she crossed her arms against her chest.

"No!" Sakuya cried. "What I'm saying is, this house is still your home, but as a married couple, you two should live in the privacy your _own_ house."

"And where, pray tell, do we suppose to get it? We haven't got the money to buy a goddamn house. Hell, we haven't even got our high school diplomas to get proper jobs!"

Her dad grinned; eyes twinkling in a creepy mixture of excitement and mischief. Misaki cringed away from him.

"What's with that look?" she asked cautiously.

Sakuya went over to a wooden cabinet in the hallway and pulled out a set of keys from one of the drawers. He held it out to them.

"What's this?" she asked confusedly as she took it.

"A set of keys, obviously."

"I know that," she snapped, glaring pointedly.

"It's for your house, of course!" he said exasperatedly.

Misaki and Takumi whipped their heads and stared at each other for exactly five seconds without blinking; shock was written all over their faces.

"You're saying..." Takumi spoke slowly, prompting the old man.

"I'm saying that you already have your own house! It's our wedding gift for you two," Sakuya said. "Your father and I pooled it together. It's a nice, cozy house. You'll love it! It has three bedrooms, lots of space and even has a small garden. It's all yours, children."

Misaki shook her head in both disbelief and amusement. "Are you for real? Since when did you buy it? Why didn't I know of this? This is crazy!"

"We bought it a few months ago. And you _really_ weren't supposed to know until now. So, off you go!" He shooed them towards the door.

Misaki held on to the cabinet to avoid being swept away. "Wait, wait, wait! Why are you so in a hurry to kick me out? Where's mom? I haven't seen her yet. And my things, I haven't even packed my things! My bed, my closet, my computer–"

"We already have your things moved there. Yours, too, Takumi. No need to fret over your personal belongings; they're already there. As for your mom, she went grocery shopping. Ah, I almost forgot!" He took a pen from the cabinet and bent over to scribble something on a post-it note.

When he finished, he presented it to the couple. "Here, it's your new address. Oh, and I was just kidding about grandbabies. I'm actually not ready to have one yet, so don't start making them. Bask in your carefree youth!" he grinned insanely.

Misaki wanted to throttle her father then and there. She could not believe her father had the nerve to say that to them. "Excuse me, I don't want to hear that from someone who chucked his own daughter in an arranged marriage," she spat out.

Before Sakuya could defend himself, Takumi was ushering his battle-ready wife out the door, saying goodbye's and thank you's unnecessarily loud to drown out the insults coming from Misaki.

**•=•=•=•=•=•=•=•=•=•=•=•  
**

When the cab stopped in front of a two-story white house with half-wall brick fence, reality struck her hard; Misaki was only sixteen and her father had already kicked her out. Now, she stood side-by-side with her husband as they looked up their new house like they were expecting it to speak and welcome them.

They looked at each other, telepathically saying, _Let's do this._

Silently, Misaki opened the metal gate. Takumi followed her; taking all their luggage in.

The front porch was nice. It was filled with flowering plants and bushes. The short walk from the gate to the door was paved in narrow brick flooring. The door was a light mahogany wood.

Misaki opened it and the warmth of her new home wafted on her cheeks as if welcoming her. She stepped inside and took in her surroundings.

The living room was already furnished with a wide sofa and matching two couches on either side of a wooden center table. The glass windows had bright yellow and pink laced curtains. On the opposite side, a large plasma TV hang against the bare wall. There was a bookshelf on the far end filled with vases in various shapes and sizes. There was also a bunch of different displays neatly scattered around, making the white room jump in colors.

Misaki slumped on the sofa, exhaustion taking over her. She closed her eyes and took her time swallowing it all in. She felt a movement beside her.

"Pretty nice," Takumi said quietly, sitting closely next to her.

"Yeah," she agreed.

There was a beat of extra silence in the room. She scooted closer to him and just like she used to in the past week, she rested her head on his shoulder. It wasn't something she did on purpose, it was like an act purely on instinct and almost unconsciously.

"So..." She opened her eyes and looked at him. "Does this mean we're officially stuck with each other?" she asked so innocently cute Takumi had to laugh. The sound of it filled the void quietness and it rang in her ears like the bells hanging in her old bedroom window. It sounded like home.

"Seems like it," he replied.

Misaki sighed.

Having spent a week-long cruise with him was one thing. Living with him was another. It was two completely different situations. So many things to consider, too many things were to be affected. Was it really okay? Were they compatible to live under the same roof? Could they both get out alive and survive?

Well, the test had just begun.

**•=•=•=•=•=•=•=•=•=•=•=•**

**29 October 2013**

**OWARI**

**•=•=•=•=•=•=•=•=•=•=•=•**

SORA'S RAMBLING CORNER:

Too fast paced!

I think the way they became close to each other is way too fast. But I actually like it, hahaha! I want this story to become more snuggly-cuddly-fluffy so I guess... no more dilly dallying!

Thank you for dropping by, I appreciate it a lot. Please continue to support my story :)

Itte kuru ne~


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